Frozen Heart
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: All her life, Weiss has only known the cold. Until she met a certain innocent, reckless dolt. [Old story, throwback to vol1].


**This is a very very old roleplay my friend and I did back at least 4 years ago. It takes place like volume 1 or 2, so I don't expect many people to follow it since it's such a huge rewind and a very overdone concept (I've done it myself in Thaw) but I still wanted to share this anyway. I want to get my roleplays out as stories for people to enjoy, and I've made a lot of edits to improve it from what it was 4 years ago. So I hope you enjoy!**

**Again, this is probably set in volume 1. They're still in Beacon together. What a throwback.**

**It's also kind of an incorrect concept... Back then we used to think Weiss' ice/elements were tied to her semblance more than Dust, and therefore she could control it without a weapon. So yeah it's kind of an outlandish concept, even for RWBY, but hopefully you can enjoy anyway!**

**Weiss' parts are underlined and Ruby's are regular.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

Frozen Heart

It was cold.

It was the middle of spring, and yet it was cold. Unnaturally so, even for Weiss. She could feel shudders racking her body, the core of her stomach being the epicenter.

She could remember the last time this had happened; nine years ago. She'd sworn it would never happen again - but now she could feel it brewing once more.

_Why? Not again, _please_ not now…_

She remembered the painful results of the previous incident, which had started with the entirety of her bedroom being covered in sheets of ice as she slept...

Panicking, she threw the blankets off of herself and sat up quickly enough to make her dizzy. Her eyes darted franticly about the room.

But it was normal. Blake and Yang had left early that morning, as it was the weekend and they were out for recreation, leaving Ruby and herself alone. Weiss calmed her breath enough to listen, relieved to hear her partner's bubbling snores coming from above.

The heiress glanced down at her hands; they were stiff, and it was difficult to curl her fingers, but at least they weren't blue… She shivered, but from the unpleasant memory or from the present chill weighing down the air around her, she didn't know.

It was still early, therefore she hoped to have enough time to suppress the ice before it got out of control. Weiss slipped back beneath her covers, lying on her stomach as she crushed her hands beneath her chest, trying to keep them warm.

_I can't let it happen again…_

_. . ._

Ruby woke to an eerie chill, and responded by pulling her blankets tighter around herself. It was springtime now, wasn't it? So why was it so cold?

"Weiss- Hey, Weiss-" Ruby whispered, hanging off the side of her bed to look down at her partner. She'd gotten so good at it that she didn't even need to use her hands for anything but to hold the hem of her tank top from sliding down her stomach. "-Are you awake yet?"

. . .

Weiss inhaled a sharp breath, shifting her hands slightly beneath herself, testing their temperature by holding them to her stomach. They felt normal. At least, she thought they did.

"Yes, _now_ I'm awake," she grunted, acting as though Ruby's voice had been what roused her. Weiss rolled onto her back to find a familiar face peeking down at her.

Ruby's presence soothed her for a moment; the younger girl had a constant air about her that made everyone feel like life was going to be wonderful. For a second, Weiss almost relaxed.

But then, another shudder ran through her, and she made sure to keep her hands beneath the blankets even as she sat up in bed.

"Please don't fall again," she muttered to her leader.

. . .

"I'm not gonna fall!" To prove her point, Ruby swung from the edge of the bed down into Weiss' with ease, and snuggled up beside her. "It was a totally controlled landing!"

To her surprise, even with how bunkered-down in the blankets she was, Weiss was still pretty chilly. Ruby frowned.

"Are you okay, Weiss? You feel so cold! Let me help!" Ruby spooned her and nuzzled against her shoulder, hoping to impart some of her warmth to her.

. . .

Weiss tensed instantly when she felt her bed shudder with Ruby's added weight.

_Oh no- _

She made a swift attempt to get out of bed, but Ruby was too quick - curse her semblance - and had already pressed against her.

She was… warm. _Very_ warm, and Weiss felt herself relax just for a second. She wanted to stay like this more than anything. She wanted to sleep enveloped in this warmth, until everything was over and she had stopped her infernal shivering.

But Ruby couldn't find out her awful secret. Weiss wouldn't allow it.

Weiss had to get away, so naturally, she lashed out.

"_No_!" she snapped, nearly shouting. She was glad that her back was to Ruby; she couldn't bear to imagine the hurt in her partner's eyes right now.

The heiress kicked the covers off her legs and wriggled away from Ruby, getting to her feet as she hugged herself, keeping her hands hidden beneath her arms. Without turning back, she muttered a soft apology to the brunette before she hurried off to the bathroom.

. . .

_What's wrong with me...?_

Ruby should've known better. Weiss had never been the cuddliest of partners, and Ruby had definitely overstepped her boundaries.

She sat up as Weiss scrambled to leave her, reaching out imploringly.

"Weiss!" She cried out, following her until the bathroom door stopped her. "Weiss, what's wrong?! Please talk to me!" Her heart began to race - she hated this, she'd felt this feeling before, somewhere- "-I'm... I'm sorry-"

It hurt. She'd thought she'd been getting closer to Weiss, that Weiss had started opening up to her a bit more as of recently.

Ruby choked with a sob, bowing her forehead against the door.

"I didn't mean to make you upset... If I did and hurt your feelings or something... I-I would never ever ever wanna do that to you! You're so important to me, Weiss! I didn't mean it-! I-!"

-she almost said it that time. Ruby sank to her knees dejectedly and tried really hard not to let Weiss hear her sniffle. She wasn't crying all the way yet, but she felt really rotten. Her voice was fragile and despondent.

"…Please talk to me, okay?"

. . .

Weiss bit back a hiccup as she locked the door behind herself, slamming her back against it to prevent Ruby from getting in. Her heart sank to the pit of her stomach when she heard Ruby cry out after her so desperately, like a child being abandoned by her mother-

"No-!" Weiss gasped again, cutting off the thought. She realized how loud her voice was, how it must have sounded like a rejection. She forced her voice to be lower, swallowing hard. "No… that's not what I-"

What was she doing? She was supposed to be composed about this. It'd happened before an she'd dealt with it then. So why was she so flustered suddenly now that Ruby was here?

Weiss felt her heart pound harder when she realized the answer.

If things got out of control, if she couldn't control her ice, she could end up seriously hurting Ruby…

"No…" she said again, both to Ruby and to herself. "Ruby, don't… don't apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. This is just… something I've got to deal with. Alone."

She could hear the waver in her partner's voice, the delicate whimper that threatened to explode into hysterics at any moment. Weiss wanted nothing more than to burst back into the room and embrace her, to comfort her-

-but how could she do that when she was so _cold_?

Realizing she'd lost the feeling in her hands, Weiss rushed to the sink, turning the water onto its highest setting and plunging her freezing hands into it. Steam rose up for a few seconds, but still the feeling didn't return. Weiss panicked, rubbing her hands together frantically, trying to curl her fingers, trying to feel something, _anything_-

At last, the heat began to register as it melted the ice away. But the water was searing hot - enough to burn - and as soon as she could feel it, Weiss cried out in pain.

"Ah-!"

Withdrawing her hands, she held them to her chest, sucking in a breath through her teeth.

This was a fine mess.

. . .

Ruby listened quietly, subdued, as Weiss insisted the contrary to what she believed. It… wasn't her fault? But Weiss always seemed to rub away from her and rejected any form of closeness and-

"Weiss?!" Ruby shrieked, instantly trying the door handle, panicking as she found it to be locked. It had sounded like pain, like she'd been hurt- "Weiss, please-!" she sobbed, "-I don't get it! I wanna help you and be with you! Just come out and _talk to me_-" she begged, jiggling the door handle furiously.

. . .

Weiss hissed as the throbbing in her hands finally started to die away. But it wasn't her natural warmth that took over; it was the accursed ice again.

Her stomach twisted, and with a whimper she looked back to the door, debating what to do. She wanted to let Ruby in _so_ _badly_, but…

But what if Ruby got hurt because of her?

Weiss had to refuse - as much as it hurt her, and as much as she knew it was hurting Ruby - she just couldn't jeopardize that girl.

"I'm sorry, Ruby. I can't… n-not now…"

Her voice had started to tremble, her breath now billowing white as the chills overcame her. It was worse than it had been nine years ago. All the more reason she wanted to open the door and beg Ruby for help.

All the more reason she couldn't. The intensity of the ice was connected to her emotions, and she simply couldn't settle down.

She reached out to the door knob to ensure it was locked, but upon contact, a sheet of thin ice spread out from her fingertips. Gasping, she pulled back, watching in horror as the patterns of frost glided over the knob; if Ruby shook it hard enough it would surely shatter.

Weiss didn't know what to do.

"R-Ruby..."

. . .

She was scared. She was scared because she could tell Weiss was scared, and she just wanted to be near her.

"Why?! Why won't you let me _help_-"

She had been jostling the door from the knob, and it finally fractured under the stress and swung wide open.

Weiss was shaking. Her eyes were wide and scared and tearful. Ruby sobbed and ran to her, almost knocking her over with how roughly she lunged to embrace her.

"You're freezing, Weiss-! Please don't deal with this a-a-alone-" Her skin was so cold that Ruby was starting to shiver too.

_Please warm up_, she begged inwardly. _Weiss needs it, please_-

. . .

"Ruby, don't-!" Weiss cried out in dismay as the door was flung open, and Ruby ran to her.

She wanted to hold her so, _so_ badly-

-but she couldn't.

"Ruby-! R-Ruby, listen to me, you dolt! You don't unders-stand, you can't t-touch me!" Weiss struggled desperately against her partner's tight embrace, trying to pry her off. It would hurt Ruby to push her away, but it would hurt her _more_ to keep her near like this. She'd only been touching Weiss for a few seconds and she was already shivering.

That proved just how badly Weiss' emotions were out of control, but she didn't know what to do, or how to make it stop.

She grasped Ruby's shoulders with trembling hands, using every scrap of strength in her body to push her away.

_Get away from me-!_

"Ruby, I-I'm sorry, but I don't-" She gasped as she felt a swell of emotion course through her. It traveled quickly through her chest, down her arms and to her hands, channeling a severe wave of cold onto Ruby.

Weiss yelped and wretched herself away, clutching her hands together as she stared at her partner, horrified.

"R-Ruby?!"

. . .

Ruby screamed and crumpled to the floor, the tears that had sprung to her eyes quickly freezing over and sealing them shut. Her lips quivered and began to turn blue, her fingernails taking on a similar shade-

She was cold. She was so cold...

She sobbed Weiss' name brokenly as she lay curled up on the floor, chest stuttering for breath that was cool and cloudy as it left her lips. She felt like her blood was liquid ice, pearly droplets spreading cold as they tried desperately to pump towards her heart. Her lips were parted, and her fingers tried to curl.

She was helpless.

. . .

"_Ruby!" _

Weiss screamed her name in a voice that cracked and shattered like the ice. Another pulse of frost threatened to break free, but Weiss swallowed hard and forced it down, keeping it beneath her skin where it belonged.

Ruby was… she was withering right before her very eyes and it was _her_ fault. Weiss had done this, and no one else. Ruby had only been trying to help her like the selfless girl she was, like a good leader, and now-

-and now she was freezing over and it was _Weiss'_ fault.

The ice she couldn't control wasn't just hurting Ruby now. It was _killing_ her.

_Weiss_ was killing her.

"No- _no_-!" She couldn't afford to cry, lest the tears freeze her eyes shut too, but she couldn't stop the droplets. They overlapped down her cheeks, freezing in crystalline trails dangerously quickly. Weiss needed to find help, she needed to find Yang-

But Ruby didn't have that kind of time.

Weiss fell to her knees brokenly, stiff hands cradling her partner's head.

Not again. What had she done to deserve this a second time? She'd nearly killed _her_, too, nine years ago, almost had to watch her own sister die, freeze over, pale and blue and terrified, until the servants had wretched Weiss away and gotten Winter the help she'd needed.

Weiss had wanted to let herself die at that time, but she hadn't. Whatever this ice was, it was a curse, something that was implemented to make her suffer as she watched those she loved crumple before her eyes.

She needed to get away from Ruby, but leaving her alone wouldn't save her. Weiss didn't know what _would_ save her, or if anything could. But she couldn't just sit there and watch. Not again.

Ruby had made an effort to reach out to her, and her fingers were blue and frosted, worse than Weiss' own due to her being unaccustomed to the cold. Weiss tried to get up, tried to get her hot water - _anything_ \- but her nightgown had iced over and frozen to the floor, keeping her down.

"R…Ruby…" She whimpered like child, terrified and desperate. She reached out her hand, touching Ruby's fingers with her own. "R-Ruby… I'm sorry… I…"

There was no warmth left within her, nothing she could share with her leader. Only cold.

Even as she touched Ruby now, she felt more ice spread onto her knuckles. Perhaps it would be best if they both simply froze together like this…

No. _Absolutely not_.

Ruby had her whole life ahead of her. She was going to become the greatest huntress Remnant had ever seen, and Weiss was going to watch her do it. She still had so much to do, so much to see and so much to learn.

Weiss tried to do something, unsure of whether or not it would work, but she had to _try_.

From the place where her fingers met Ruby's, she tried to pull the ice back to herself, drag it out from Ruby's bloodstream and back into her own. She concentrated, lifting her other arm to break the tears off her cheeks. She couldn't touch Ruby any more than this; she _wanted_ to, but-

A shudder ran through her as some of the ice was pulled back. Weiss gasped at how much it hurt, to force it back into her bloodstream, but it was a _feeling_. And she needed to feel it again.

So she kept doing what she was doing, pulling the ice back to herself as she focused on the pain, anything but the cold. She just wanted Ruby to stop shivering, to stop hurting, to open her eyes again...

Weiss continued the process, panting with effort as she grew colder, but she could handle it for now. Ruby's skin lost its livid pallor, and the blood seemed to be flowing again. Weiss just prayed she'd make it in time.

. . .

Ruby didn't feel cold anymore. She was still shaking, but that was more from shock than anything else at this point. Her cheeks were getting rosy again, and she whined and tossed and turned a little before her eyes slowly opened, drawing in a ragged, needy breath as she did so.

Weiss was there too, and-

She looked like she was in unspeakable pain.

"_Weiss_-"

Ruby got onto her elbows as she moved to get up, rolling herself over and up and reaching out to touch Weiss' cheek. She tried to draw her close but only succeeded in dragging her to the ground-but maybe this way was better.

She crawled over Weiss without regard for what had happened to herself before, and smoothed her hair off her forehead, looking into her eyes. They were tearful and tortured.

Weiss needed help. She was alone with this and she needed help-

"Weiss... L-Let me-" She let her body pool onto Weiss' completely, one arm bracing against the floor behind her head protectively, the other hand pulling her chin up as Ruby pressed lips to lips.

. . .

Weiss nearly collapsed from relief when she saw Ruby stir and open her eyes again.

_Thank goodness…_

Ruby drew close to her, and Weiss tried to scramble back, but she couldn't move. The younger girl's soft hands made contact with her hard skin, bringing Weiss onto her back on the floor as Ruby pressed close to her. Weiss needed to push her off, warn her that if Ruby touched her like this it would happen again-

She felt pressure on her lips, and it took a moment to register everything. There was warmth, something she thought she'd forgotten the feeling of after everything that had happened. But the ice wasn't leaking from there, where Ruby's lips touched hers.

Ruby's heartbeat was fast and nervous against her chest, but it was a sturdy tempo, certain and almost defiant as she did all she could think to do to help the heiress.

Weiss didn't know what to do. More tears were freezing on her cheeks, but it didn't hurt so badly anymore. The cold was seeping into Ruby again, but it was somewhat limited as Weiss focused not on the ice, but instead on the warmth. She couldn't bear the thought of hurting Ruby again, seeing her like that-

She whimpered in apology, in gratitude, in fear and uncertainty of what would become of them as she laid helplessly in Ruby's arms, and kissed her back with everything she was worth.

. . .

Ruby mumbled her name against her lips and slid her hand down Weiss' shoulders, balancing her palm right over where her heart was. Her aura surged forth and she tried to focus, tried to call forth the warmest memory she knew, the ones she could share with Weiss-

They were all of Weiss herself.

She kissed Weiss's mouth again, then her cheek, then her jaw, pleading with all the voice her heart had.

_Don't you understand? You make me warmer than any other person in the world. You need to believe me…_

_. . ._

She felt shockwaves flowing into her; the hardened chill of her ice was painful, but there was something more…

Ruby.

Her aura was being channeled into Weiss' body - soft and warm and protective. She was reaching out to Weiss with her very soul, and the heiress could see images dancing on the backs of her eyelids; their first meeting, when their eyes met in the Emerald Forest, Ruby's efforts to console her, their rapport and their chemistry.

Ruby was giving her everything she had. Weiss wasn't about to let that go to waste.

She stopped resisting, stopped trying to push her away. Weiss opened herself up and let Ruby in, let her help…

The warring cold and heat made it harder to breathe, but she focused on Ruby. She didn't want to go back to the snowy mountains. She wanted to go to the warm place, to the place that smelled like flowers and sunlight…

Everything inside of her was a battle in that moment, the ice shredding at Ruby's aura which responded with a determined, consistent flow - soft and calming.

Weiss held tightly to her, shivering violently now, with her entire body, chills erupting from her core and moving outward in ragged jolts, her breath short and clipped. She expelled the cold from every part of her, welcoming Ruby's warmth - her love - instead.

At long last, Weiss gave one final shudder before she went limp. Her head dropped back onto the floor as a sigh escaped her lips, a single tear running down her scarred cheek as the exhaustion won her over.

. . .

"Weiss-?" Ruby whispered as the girl in her arms closed her eyes.

She couldn't imagine how exhausted she must feel. She was getting warmer though. Maybe if…

Ruby lifted Weiss' slight and slender frame and staggered to her feet. She was still a little woozy herself, but the ice around her was disappearing little by little.

She managed to open the door and step back out into the bedroom, taking care not to jostle Weiss in her arms. Carefully, Ruby got her back to her bed, wrapping her in blankets and making sure she was comfortable.

Ruby sat there for a moment and watched her, fidgeting with worry until she couldn't bear it any longer. She crawled beneath the blankets with Weiss and hugged her tight, nestling into her collar.

"Please, Weiss... please wake up..."

. . .

She couldn't make much sense of anything, but there was one feeling that was more prominent than the others.

Warm. It was so warm. If she could bring herself to open her eyes, she'd probably cry because it was so warm and it felt so good.

Weiss tried to focus on her aura, getting a grasp on it. She could feel it resonating steadily just as it always did, no longer leaking or overpowering or threatening with cold.

The chills were gone, but it was different from last time.

Previously, the cold spell would recoil, withdraw back under her skin and wait, lurking like a predator for the next time to strike.

But now it was gone entirely, and she couldn't remember if she'd ever felt so light, so free…

She heard a familiar voice and realized she was in her bed. Ruby must have taken her there. And that would also explain the warm softness pressing up against her chest...

Slowly, Weiss cracked her eyes open to find the familiar sight of the underside of Ruby's bed. No ice.

There was a gentle, snug pressure on her chest. She could feel Ruby nuzzling against her neck. Weiss' arms ached a little as she lifted them and draped them across her leader's back. Her voice was hoarse, but it did the job.

"Ruby..."

. . .

Ruby perked up in an instant.

"W-Weiss! How are you feeling? Are you warm enough-?"

Weiss looked so fragile like this. But she looked better than ever, at the same time. Her cheeks held some color again.

Ruby hugged her around her torso and sighed, deflating against Weiss' chest.

"I was so scared... Thank goodness you're okay..."

. . .

Weiss could feel warm hands running over her sides and back, and she needed to close her eyes, lest more tears slip out. She squeezed Ruby more tightly to herself and sighed. She could feel Ruby's heart thumping steadily with her own. Weiss tightened her hold around her a bit more, confirming she was really there.

Her voice started to tumble out in a soft murmur.

"Yes... I'm warm, I'm fine… thanks to you," she sniffed. "I... I never thought I could be this warm. I don't ever want to stop being warm._ Thank you, Ruby._.."

. . .

Ruby smiled and eased back a little so she could look into her pretty blue eyes.

"And I never thought I could be this _happy_." She squeezed her even tighter before drawing back to press another soulful kiss to her lips. It was a little longer than a friendly peck, and that was on purpose.

She never wanted Weiss to have a reason to doubt that that warmth was here to stay.

Now that they could be close again it felt nice - almost too good to believe. She rubbed noses with Weiss and giggled.

"It's been a rough morning," she sighed. "Whaddaya say we just... go back to bed...?"

. . .

Weiss breathed into the kiss and exhaled when it was over. Her heart fluttered as she looked up into silver.

"That sounds wonderful. Perhaps the best idea you've ever had."

Weiss curled herself around Ruby and kissed her soft hair, taking in the scent of roses.

And for the first time in as long as she could remember, she felt truly, truly warm.

* * *

**A/N: Initially the original roleplay had a second part to it, but it honestly didn't feel like it fit with this as a story. It was basically just my partner and I indulging ourselves with whatever we wanted, so I took it out of the story version so it wouldn't feel as forced.**

**Re-reading and editing this, it seems super rushed and very old... uhh I hope you enjoyed it anyway?**

**Please review!**


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